PATTERNS IN THE SKY BY JULIUS D.W.STAAL

Few,if ever,can remain unmoved by the beauty of a starlit sky on a clear night.But to many who are uninitiated in the mysteries of the star lore,the sky means no more than a jumbling together of a number of stars.With the result the joy and fascination they feel on looking at a star -studded sky is a vague,passing experience.For those who wish to make this experience richer and more permanent, here is a beautiful book written by a scientist.It is a book which every lover of stars would like and enjoy,and novitiates in the art of star- gazing would find it very useful in locating their favorite stars.
The  book makes an introductory survey of the aesthetic and astronomical aspect ,and deals with another aspect-the mythology and legends of the stars,with the hope that it may  serve as an incentive to readers 'to know a little more about the heavens from scientific point of view.
The author makes available to us in this book some of the stories,culled from Greek mythology and from other sources wherever possible,and associated with the main groupings of stars.The stars described are classified under four groups :the stars of autumn,the stars of winter,the stars of spring,and the stars of summer.After narrating the stories connected with each group of stars,the author gives us interesting information about them in a scientific manner.'Many star stories are formed by groups of constellations,which make an inseparable entity,such as the"Orion,Taurus,Pleiades, Canis Major and Minor,Auriga,Gemini,group" or the"Cassiopeia,Cepheus,Andromeda,Perseus,Pegasus,Cetus group".In these cases,The group as a whole is first of all described, and after that ,where necessary, each individual constellation is enlarged upon.
A fine book imaginatively conceived and gracefully written.